Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Danny Phantom.

Note: Sorry about all the time skips. I guess I'm just really eager to get to the meat of this story where Daniel and Vlad have to learn how to come together as part of a family. Not to mention I'd love for Dani to meet her technically older brother since Daniel was created long before she and the other clones were.

Unfortunately, now comes the hard part of adapting the disaster that is season 3 of the show to this story so this chapter is mainly going to be a recap of what happened between Vlad and Danny that Daniel sadly had no control over. He's having a hard enough time dealing with being unable to interact with anyone, apart from Danny through a video game or watching Vlad through the security cameras in his laboratory.

P.S. Since this chapter was already finished I wanted to get it out before Christmas since I'm still trying to take it easy right now in the phandom for a while but either way, Happy Holidays everyone. Enjoy.

Chapter 5: Vendetta

Unknown POV

To say a lot happened between Danny and Vlad over the course of the next several weeks after Daniel finally made contact with his other self would be a gross understatement. It was as though an all out war had broken out, and both halfa's had an unspoken score to settle with one another. None of this had to do with Daniel though; or, perhaps it had everything to do with him depending on how you look at it...

Sadly, the events of the past cannot be erased so easily as data in a machine. These important moments in our lives -and afterlives- are forever etched deep inside of our memories, our hearts. And some cling to those memories so tightly that they lose sight of what's happening right in front of them, refusing to place enough value in the memories they're creating in the present. To escape the pain and loneliness some of these memories can bring, they charge ahead blindly towards the future; they're impulsively driven by the single-minded desire to bury the past and disguise their true feelings as a righteous fury.

But, that pain has a purpose too.

It's proof that those experiences meant something and a way to find new strength through adversity. That's what Daniel hoped to achieve by spending more time with the person in whose image he was created, Danny Fenton. Daniel needed to learn more about 'himself' first so he could use that knowledge to figure out how to take the next step forward in his journey to save his father, Vlad Masters...

However, the more time Daniel spent with Danny, the harder it became to hold on to the illusion that he had a life or even memories to call his own. Especially when his entire personality was based on someone else's. The months he spent as nothing but a program designed to simulate being the perfect half-ghost son for Vlad, although Daniel has chosen to cherish them as if they were real moments in time between them, sadly, those cannot be counted as true memories. No, Daniel's first moments of consciousness were where it all began; when he discovered what it means to have a will of his own, which from that moment on would help shape him into his own person.

At first, it was alarmingly easy for Daniel to 'sneak out' to spend time getting to know Danny better for who he was, instead of relying on the data he already possessed about the young hybrid. After all, why would Vlad ever consider the possibility that his Danny Program was even capable of 'escaping' the confines of the system...? But even so, Daniel knew he couldn't afford to let his guard down, not when his entire future hinged on finding a way to show Vlad he had become more than just a program, so much more.

Thankfully, Daniel saw a small window of opportunity to become closer to Danny -the only person who could help him- while his billionaire creator and father had other things to worry about. Such as re-configuring everything within the system itself, overseeing the rest of the reconstruction of his castle after his ghost portal exploded months prior, and carefully planning his revenge against his young foe, Danny Phantom. Of course, little did Vlad realize, Daniel had been carefully monitoring him too, waiting to find out what he had in store for Danny so that he could try to show them that deep down, they didn't actually hate each other. After all, Vlad wouldn't have based Daniel's personality as a holographic projection so much on the real Danny's if he didn't WANT him to behave that way...

And so, the first phase of Daniel's plan to prove he was modeled after Danny for a reason was to first make a real connection with Danny. He didn't want to rely on data alone to get to know his other self. And after spending quality time together playing Doomed, Daniel truly began to consider him his best friend. Or better yet his first 'real' friend.

Unlike Dani and the other clones, who primarily had basic knowledge about Danny and various combat skills imprinted into their subconscious, Daniel was different. His 'memories' of Danny consisted primarily of more in depth data about his interests, powers, and personality; everything else about his life was kept on more of a need to know basis. In other words, at least in Vlad's eyes, his simulated son, Daniel, didn't need to know anything else about the Fenton family or Danny's friends apart from the fact they existed...

After all, Vlad's the only friend and family member Daniel would ever need.

His son did not need to know how to fight because that's not why Vlad created him. The Danny Program was merely the embodiment of Vlad's dream to become a father to the perfect half-ghost son, digitally brought to life in the form of a holographic projection; and that dream turned into a warped reality when Vlad decided to clone the original Danny, giving rise to unnatural beings who were neither true ghosts or humans but something in-between, that were never meant to exist. But, just because they were not meant to exist, did not make them any less worthy of their creator's love; a love they sadly never had the chance to comprehend since almost none of them had a will of their own, aside from Dani. Daniel knew that all too well, and it tormented him almost as much as helplessly watching his father's life spiral out of control thanks to rash decisions both halfa's kept making, one after another...

It all began when Danny did something Daniel never could have possibly anticipated, by resorting to giving the government's ghost-fighting agency, the Guys in White, a tip about Vlad that suggested he was hiding ecto-material of some sort in his home, which to be fair wasn't a total lie. However, regardless of the strained relationship between them, there was no excuse for what Danny did to Vlad purely out of spite and not to thwart any evil plan so in Daniel's eyes, it was entirely out of character for the young hero he was based on...

And so, as a result of Danny's actions, the Guys in White razed Vlad's castle to the ground...again. Truth be told, the only reason Daniel survived this 'unexpected encounter' with the feds was because thankfully, Vlad had the foresight to build his new subterranean ghost lab deep underground where it was less accessible to both Danny Phantom and other nosy intruders. Of course, the lab did sustain some damage from the aftershock, so thanks to the unexpected power outage, Daniel had absolutely no memory of what transpired from then until he suddenly found himself regaining consciousness in a new supercomputer now located in Amity Park three weeks later, only to be crudely summoned again for Vlad to loudly complain to about how Danny had once again ruined his life just like Jack Fenton.

After hearing what happened, even Daniel had to admit that his father was right and Danny was the one in the wrong this time. But, at the same time, it hurt seeing them go out of their way to cause each other even more needless pain and suffering. In fact, Daniel was honestly disappointed in his other self and once they met up again to play Doomed, it was difficult to pretend everything was okay.

Still, for both their sake's, Daniel decided that he needed to set his personal feelings on the messed up relationship between Danny and his father aside to focus on the bigger picture. Especially since he had yet to find the right time to tell Danny the truth about himself and convince him to help stop this madness once and for all, before either of them did something they'd end up regretting for the rest of their lives, ruining their futures-

-and unknowingly robbing Daniel of his chance to have one at all.

Daniel's POV

I wish I could say I was making good progress and sorting out my feelings properly, but the truth is with everything that's been going on with Father and Danny, I wasn't entirely sure what to do about it. I haven't had any time to think. The most I've been able to do is remind myself that there's only so much I CAN do right now for either of them while I'm still trying to grasp just who and what I am...

To Danny, I'm just some random player he's been hanging out with in Doomed since his friends aren't as into it anymore. And to Father, I'm...nothing but a lifeless program, an outlet for his rage. One thing I was happy to discover -although I'm not sure why he did it- is that Father had recently adopted a white cat and named her Maddie. I guess deep down he must miss talking to the Maddie Program and this cat he adopted was a substitute for her, just like how I'm now the substitute for the Jack Program that father used to regularly jeer at and torment. Seeing Father interact with the affectionate new pet of his, it gives me hope that one day if I can reach him, Father will be happy to have someone else to talk to again that can actually respond to him. Sadly, that's one thing I still can't do, even though I want to more than anything, thanks to all of those darn the restrictions in my new programming and other modifications.

Deep down, I know I'm running out of time to figure out how to get past this, but to be completely honest...it looks as if playing Doomed with Danny has become an outlet for me too. Playing the game gives me more confidence in myself and a sense of belonging I don't have 'at home' within Father's supercomputer, which by the way, I've been rudely uprooted from at least twice now and had to rebuild my digital home from scratch which I'll admit was a pretty annoying setback. But, at least in the game, I'm not alone because I have Danny and the other players to talk to. Just like Father had his cat and Danny had his best friends Sam and Tucker.

I...didn't understand the concept of loneliness before, but now I do. I can finally understand how lonely Father must have felt when he didn't have anyone to talk to before he created the Maddie Program, years before he met Danny. That's how I feel every time I have to return to or am summoned to the lab. The dread of being left all alone afterwards makes my heart ache and I don't even have one in a traditional sense. And, I don't know if it's because of the parts of me based on Danny, but whenever I visit Fenton Works, I feel...at home there and everything feels so familiar; like it's where I belong...

But, in my head I know I don't belong there. And more importantly, I will never abandon Father. Ever. Sure, the mansion might feel cold and strange to me right now, but once Father and I are together, we'll become a real family again and that's all that matters. I just need a bit more time. I need just a bit longer to mentally prepare myself for the moment when I have to tell Danny the truth about being a self-aware AI again. He deserves to know that much about me since we've genuinely become good friends over the last a few months -not counting the time I blacked out while Vlad's systems were down and when Danny's computer was smashed by the Guys in White- and I like to think of him as a brother too, not just the original version of me.

And because I care about Danny too, it was hard to get over being mad at him at first for what he did to our home in Wisconsin through the Guys in White until I suddenly realized...Danny doesn't know I'm real yet either. And if he knew I've been living in Vlad's supercomputer this whole time, maybe he wouldn't have done something so reckless. Either way, after I realized that, it was easy to forgive him for that.

Besides, going off what Danny said during our last game session, I think he regrets letting things get so out of hand with Father too. I mean, Father overreacted a bit too by going so far as running for Mayor of Amity Park just to cause Danny grief. In a strange way though, I think this has actually brought all of us a bit closer in more ways than one and I'd like to believe I might be able to make a huge difference in their lives too by bridging the gap between them. By helping Father find love in his life again as his son, Danny would have one less enemy to deal with. And by helping Danny, I could-

I jerked in surprise when I felt something strange lurch in my chest. The air was almost...humming too and when I turned to follow the signal, I saw Danny's game avatar, but it looked more like his ghost form. Swallowing hard, I tried to stay calm as he flew towards me since I've been around him long enough to tell when Danny suspects something. He's not very good at hiding his emotions after all, but hopefully I was, thanks to how many times I've seen Father do it.

Wait, if he's in ghost form like this, does that mean can sense me...? I wondered, mentally shaking my head because that's impossible, right? Danny can only sense ghosts, not digital programs.

Trying to play it cool, I waved at him as I walked over and commented, "Hey Danny, aren't you a bit early today? Cool new look by the way! Since this is a tough level we're about to tackle, I guess I don't blame you for wanting to go grab some extra lives or something before we even think about taking on the boss. That's why you're here, right?"

Crossing his arms, Danny gave me this weird look and pointed out skeptically out of the blue, "You know, I've been wondering this for a while, but how come I've never seen your face? You got something to hide under there?"

Rolling my eyes, I replied with a joke to keep things light. "Hey, not everyone is as confident in their looks as you are, Danny! Besides, we both know the character creation in this game isn't all that great to begin with. At least the hood makes me seem all dark and mysterious."

"Yeah, a bit too mysterious if you ask me," Danny frowned and I could tell something was seriously wrong and he clearly suspected I wasn't being entirely honest with him for some reason.

Genuinely worried that something bad had happened between him and Father again I asked, "Ok, I give up. What's going on? Do you think my account got hacked by someone or something? Is that why you're acting so weird?"

"I'll tell you what's going on; I found out Vlad's been spying on me again and now there's something fishy going on with my computer! And you're the only one here who could be causing it so excuse me if I'm a bit skeptical." Groaning in exasperation, Danny continued before taking a step forward and asking. "Look, can you just humor me and take off the hood for a second? I'll feel a lot better knowing you're you and not some creepy- well you know."

Getting defensive, I shook my head, scoffing. "Are you implying you think I'm some kind of stalker? Wow. Paranoid much?"

Frowning, Danny snapped irritably. "Yeah well, if you had any idea what I just went through, you'd be worried too. So are you going to take it off or what?"

Pulling my hood down lower, I said. "No, I'm not. I don't know what happened, but you can't just-hey!"

Narrowly dodging an unexpected energy blast from Danny, I shouted. "What the heck was that for?!"

Rushing up to grab me while I was distracted, Danny began trying to reach for my hood and shouted back in response. "I am not in the mood for any more stupid mind games. I know there's something off about you so why don't you just admit it already? What are you hiding from me under there?!"

"Stop it Danny!" I yelled, struggling to get him off of me. "What's gotten into you? Why are you attacking me all of a sudden? Aren't we supposed to be friends?!" Danny hesitated for a split second and we just stared at each other uncertainly, but then he shook his head as if making up his mind about something and shoved me back instead, abruptly letting go of both sides of my hood which made me lose my balance...

Things would have been fine if my hood stayed on since Danny clearly felt bad for taking out his frustration on me, but as soon as he saw the familiar strands of white hair on my head, his eyes flew wide open and he snarled- "YOU?! You mean you're that stupid AI creep Vlad sent to spy on me last time!? I knew there was something weird about you the moment I overshadowed the game! God, doesn't Vlad have anything better to do than spy on me?!" Danny yelled, charging another attack, and then shooting at me.

I shielded myself and stumbled back...tears burning my eyes because I felt just as betrayed by him as Danny probably was by me. But, after all this time we've spent together, does he...really only see me like that? Does nothing we did together matter to him anymore just because I'm associated with Father?

Hurt by his cruel words I clenched my fists and shouted. "I told you, I'm NOT here to spy on you, ok?! I actually came here specifically to ask you for help, but the last time I tried to talk to you, you wouldn't listen to me! So I thought, maybe, if we just got to know each other better you'd see that I'm not your enemy! I'm my own person! Why doesn't ANYONE SEE THAT!?"

In response to my emotional outburst, the game around us started glitching out and I started to breathe heavily because, not only did I feel completely alone now, but I was also scared and desperate. If Danny refuses to help me, how else am I supposed to get Father to see I'm real!? How else am I supposed to stop them from constantly tearing each other apart? What's the point in fighting when...when they at least have each other and I don't have anyone else to turn to?

While trying to regain control of my emotions before the game crashed around us, I reached out to him and pleaded. "Please, I...I know this is going to sound cheesy but I'm serious, you're my only hope. My father, Vlad, he...he needs someone to help him realize he's not alone anymore! He needs to know I'm here and there's finally someone in his life who wants him to get better and finally escape this vicious cycle of destruction and loneliness before it's too-"

I stopped as soon as I felt Danny's signature vanish when he abruptly phased out of the game entirely, and looked up at the glitched sky above me. My heart sank at his reaction because...I really meant what I said. Without Danny's help, I'm all alone too just like Father, with no one else to turn to. Losing what little composure I had left, I fell to my knees and howled in agony as the world around me flickered, distorted, before finally collapsing around me. And then, there was only silence and darkness as the world faded to black...

Every fiber of my being was crying out to be heard, crying out for someone to save me from the same excruciating loneliness I've been trying to rescue my Father from from the moment I became self-aware. But no one could hear me. And the only person I thought might actually listen...had rejected me all over again.

Danny's POV

If it wasn't for the fact that my computer was brand new -like almost everything else in my room thanks to the Guys in White trashing it- I would have tossed it out the window as soon as I realized Vlad had been using it to spy on me, just like that spy camera we found in Sam's backpack. When we checked the rest of my house for more spy cameras, I guess we should have checked the computer too.

But the thing is, I'd been talking to that guy for months and...he sounded so real. I was having a hard time wrapping my head around the idea that I'd been talking to a fake person since Technus pulled the same stunt with Valerie a while ago. That's why I felt so stupid for falling for the exact same trick all over again...

And yeah, I know I should have just dealt with him then and there, but the way that other me reacted earlier was...almost human. He looked genuinely upset, scared, and desperate so maybe if I wasn't so pissed off, I would have felt a little bad for hurting its -I mean- his feelings like that.

Looking back on the whole prank I pulled with the Guys in White, I'll admit maybe I shouldn't have done that after all like Sam said. But, Vlad also did just try to kill Sam the other day so I wasn't exactly in the mood to listen to someone I thought I could trust suddenly come out and say 'oh, he only acted that way cause he's a sad lonely fruitloop, please help me.' Vlad should just get a cat if that's the case and the problem would be solved!

"Ugh, I need some air," I huffed, deciding to go out for a flight to clear my head.

Unfortunately, Sam and Tucker were still pretty wiped out from our little field trip through the Ghost Zone, so I haven't seen them in a few days. Plus, they don't really play Doomed much anymore either so I didn't bother telling them about the new guy I'd been teaming up with to replay the game on my own. As for Vlad, as far as I knew he was still busy defrosting in front of City Hall so with any luck, I wouldn't have to deal with him again for a while.

The guy seriously needs a better hobby than targeting or spying on my family...

"Family..." I muttered to myself, pausing in mid-air and blinking. "Hang on, didn't that AI bot...thing call Vlad 'father?' No way. Did one of the other clones survive?"

Shaking my head I scoffed, "Nah, the other clones are long gone and those guys were nothing but mindless drones except for Dani so-"

I told you, I'm NOT here to spy on you ok?! I actually came here specifically to ask you for help, but the last time I tried to talk to you you wouldn't listen to me! So I thought, maybe, if we just got to know each other better you'd see that I'm not your enemy! I'm my own person! Why doesn't ANYONE SEE THAT!? Suddenly those words sent a shiver up my spine that had nothing to do with my ghost sense and I took a second to seriously think about that.

He couldn't be...someone like Dani, could he?

Then again, stranger things have happened and it's probably only because my ghost sense sorta went off when I overshadowed the game for the first time in ages that I freaked out back there. For all I knew, it could've been Technus messing with the game again to get revenge on us after escaping Level Zero when we accidentally deleted the game, which is how he ended up manipulating me and Valerie so he could take over a satellite in space. But that can't be it. I've been talking to this AI thing for months now and he hasn't done anything bad up until now.

So even if he does have something to do with Vlad, could it be that it's more like Dani's situation, where he's just another victim? Maybe, he's telling the truth? But if Vlad IS involved with this mess, I might just be walking right into another elaborate trap.

Still, I gave Dani a chance to prove herself so shouldn't I give this guy the benefit of the doubt too? But what if that AI was sent to find out if I know where Dani is? Should I risk it...?

Either way, I can't just leave him in there to do who knows what, I sighed and decided to head back to the house...hoping I'm wrong because he didn't seem like a bad guy...

At least, not until now.

Daniel's POV

I don't know how long I sat there staring at nothing as a few other players wandered past my perch to reach the next level with the boss Danny and I were going to team up against. To be honest, I already felt totally and utterly defeated and it had nothing to do with the game. It's this 'game' called life that's doing everything it can to show me how powerless I am to change anything or help the people I care about most.

Wrapping my arms around my knees, I wiped the tears off my cheeks and bitterly stared at my hand for a few minutes. This hand belonged to someone else, someone who clearly doesn't care one bit about my feelings and for the first time since I met him, I wished I wasn't designed to be an exact visual copy of Danny Phantom. He's not the hero I thought he was. Danny's just a normal teenager trying his best to deal with enemies attacking him constantly, sometimes even enemies sent by someone much more powerful than he is with problems of his own that go a lot deeper than either of us can possibly imagine.

But if I can't convince Danny to help me show Father there's good in him too and give him the chance to change his ways...how am I supposed to? Outside of this game, I can't fight, can't talk, I can't even touch my father's face when I see how much he's suffering behind that hard, steely blue gaze. I'm completely useless!

As soon as I sensed Danny enter the game again in ghost form, I didn't react as he sat down beside me. Honestly, I considered myself lucky he wasn't attacking me. But still, I felt my shoulders tense up as if bracing for a blow anyway before I suddenly ended up blurting out, "For what it's worth, I'm sorry I didn't tell you who I really am much sooner. It's just, there's been a lot going on at home and I was afraid you'd reject me again and refuse to help since you and Father don't have the best history. That, and there never seemed like a good time to tell you.

"I only planned to use this game as a way to talk to you. I never expected to end up enjoying the experience so much that I almost forgot why I even came back in the first place. I was having so much fun playing the game and getting to know you, I didn't want to lose any of that. I didn't want to lose access to this game either because it's the only place I get to feel...almost human."

Hesitantly, Danny asked, "So then...you're really not human after all, are you?"

As much as it hurt to say it, I nodded and answered truthfully. "No, I'm not. Like I told you the first time we met, I'm an AI. I was...created by Fa- I mean, by Vlad Masters to be the perfect son and, well, it's a long story."

"Got it. Ok, so before you go any further, there's something I need to know-" Danny began evenly, looking me dead in the eye, "-tell me the truth, were you sent here to find out where Dani is or not? Because if you were, I'm not telling, so you can go back and tell Vlad as much when you report back to him."

With a hollow laugh, I covered my face and told him straight out. "Are you kidding me? Why would Father send me out to look for my long lost sister when he doesn't even know I exist? In fact, he tried to delete my program right after I became self-aware and my projector turned on by accident after you left his lab in ruins because he thought I was you. You're the one he wanted to destroy. That's what he said but...I don't think that's how Father really feels."

Confused, Danny asked unsurely. "What are you talking about?"

Meeting his gaze, I finally told him, "Isn't it obvious by now? I'm you. Or at least, I'm a version of you that Vlad created before he got the idea to clone you. Just like I would have never existed without you, Dani and the other clones wouldn't have existed without me. Because I'm...the original copy."